Meter replacement

[JohnW2]

Unlikely. It operates at your cost by way of standing charge. If they increase the phone home frequency, your standing charge goes higher.

For a start, I suspect that the energy usage by the meter's electronics is totally trivial, probably nothing like "£20 per year".

In any event, the entire cost of the provision and deployment of 'smart' meters (which is far from trivial) is ultimately borne by consumers, whether as part of the Standing Charge and/or the Usage charges.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

For a start, I suspect that the energy usage by the meter's electronics is totally trivial, probably nothing like "£20 per year".

In any event, the entire cost of the provision and deployment of 'smart' meters (which is far from trivial) is ultimately borne by consumers, whether as part of the Standing Charge and/or the Usage charges.

Kind Regards, John

I would also question why DiyNJ believes we shouldn't be expected to pay ALL the costs of providing each of us with our domestic supply.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Presumably because you are being charged (four or five hundred pounds extra) for smart meters at the Government's behest.

 

[DiyNutJob]

They make a quick call home, once per day. Under what circumstances might they need to increase that frequency. How much do your mobile calls cost?

Unlikely. Someone said earlier the usage is reported home every half an hour. No reason why they shouldn't do it every micro second, since you are paying for it from which amount they apply administration charge.

I would also question why DiyNJ believes we shouldn't be expected to pay ALL the costs of providing each of us with our domestic supply.

We do pay all costs, it's not optional. You were the one thinking home calling didn't cost you.

 

[DiyNutJob]

(four or five hundred pounds extra)

This sounds right for the call home costs from mobile.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Unlikely. Someone said earlier the usage is reported home every half an hour.

That might have been me, that suggested that, but the bit you seem oblivious of, is that the 30 minute data is STORED, then sent as a batch. They attempt to send the batch of data, once per day only.

No reason why they shouldn't do it every micro second, since you are paying for it from which amount they apply administration charge.

Really, how would they achieve that in practice? The data is sent via a mobile GPRS service, which has very limited capacity, judging by how often my own consumption data is sometimes delayed before it appears live, the system is already struggling to accept even one update per 24 hours.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

We do pay all costs, it's not optional. You were the one thinking home calling didn't cost you.

Of course there is a very tiny, absolutely miniscule cost to it, but in the great scheme of things, does it really matter? I would hazard a guess at the transmission of the data, once per day, costing sub-1p per day. I can easily afford that.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Presumably because you are being charged (four or five hundred pounds extra) for smart meters at the Government's behest.

To replace old, generally out dated, out of calibration meters anyway. Something which would have to be done at some stage anyway. Do you also object to manually read water meters, being replaced with the remotely readable versions? Welcome to a slicker, more modern, more efficient world.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Of course. The Government only has your interests at heart.

 

[DiyNutJob]

By 2025, smart meters will transmit meter readings to your energy supplier every half hour by default, rather than once a month or once a day. This change is part of updates the energy regulator, Ofgem, is introducing to help make the electricity grid greener.

 

[JohnW2]

Unlikely. Someone said earlier the usage is reported home every half an hour.

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that, although the registers in the meter do, indeed, store data in 30-minute TOU registers, they only 'call home' once or twice per day to upload all the new data accumulated since the previous upload.

No reason why they shouldn't do it every micro second, ...

No reason? If tens of millions of meters 'called home' every 30 minutes, let alone every microsecond, I suspect the GSM networks would probably be overwhelmed and users of mobile phones would be moaning all over the place!

Edit: aplogies, Harry, I hadn't seen your post (which says almost exactly the same as mine) when I posted this one! At least it proves that at least two of us think the same

Kind Regards, John

 

[JohnW2]

Presumably because you are being charged (four or five hundred pounds extra) for smart meters at the Government's behest.

This sounds right for the call home costs from mobile.

Eh? Over what period of time? My entire total mobile phone 'usage' bill is only about £180 per year.

Kind Regards, John

 

[JohnW2]

I would also question why DiyNJ believes we shouldn't be expected to pay ALL the costs of providing each of us with our domestic supply.

Indeed. That was my point.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

By 2025, smart meters will transmit meter readings to your energy supplier every half hour by default, rather than once a month or once a day. This change is part of updates the energy regulator, Ofgem, is introducing to help make the electricity grid greener.

I think you may be confused between storing and forwarding the data every 30 minutes and actually forwarding the data every 30 minutes.

I have specifically requested 30 minute data. I get readings for every 30 minutes, but never is the data current - it is always the following day, if I am lucky, though sometimes the data can be three days behind, suggesting the data has simply failed to get through, or the network too busy.

 

[DiyNutJob]

Eh? Over what period of time? My entire total mobile phone 'usage' bill is only about £180 per year.

2 calls/h * 24 * 365 = 17520 calls per year.

£600 / 17520 calls = 3.4p per call. This is about right for a bulk deal. £600 a year is unlikely to be enough. A £1000/year standing charge is more reasonable.